Improvement in gun-carriages



T.O0UGHLAN1 Gun Carriage. No. 109,181. Patented Nov. 15, 1870.

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I "fi a nesses Invanfar yaw 1 N, PEYERS. PHOTO'LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON,n c.

, 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

2 Sheets- Sheet 2.

T.GOUGHLAN.

Gun Carriage. No. 109,181. Patented Nov. 15, 1 70.

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Wz inayses ln'fwntor N. PETERS, PHOTO-LJYNOGRAPNER. WASHINGTON, D O.

tater j'fittznt dffim THOMAS OOUGHLAN, OF NEWTON, MASSAOHUSETTS.

Letters Patent No. 109,181, dated November 15, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN GUN-CARRIAGES.

The Schedule referred to In these Letters Patent and making part of thegame.

' with the accompanying drawing, is a specification.

Nature and Objects of the Invention.

My invention relates more especially to carriages to be .used infortifications, en barbette; and

Its object is the production of a carriage for heavy ordnance, soconstructed and arranged that the gun may be readily and easily raisedto such a height that it may be discharged over a parapet of sutficientheight to protect the gunners from the fire of the enemy, and also berun into batteryby the same operatiouthat raises it, and be held in thatposition untilz'it is discharged, when the recoil occasioned by thedischarge will run the gun back and cause it to descend below theparapet again, where it can be again loaded, the gunners beingcompletely protected by the high p'arapet.

.My invention consists, first, in mounting the gun in bearings formed inthe cheeks, the lower and back edges of which are formed to an arc of acircle, which is eccentric to the trunnion of the gun; or it may be inthe form of a segment of an ellipse, the trunnion of the gunoccupyingthe position of one of the focuses of the ellipse, these curvededges of the cheeks being provided with a series 0f cogs or gear-teeth,fitted to work in corresponding teeth formed in the upper edges of thetraversing-rails, said teethbeing so arranged on said rails that theirpitch-lines form re-- versed curves, as shown in the drawing, saidcheeks being so mounted upon the traversing-rails that, when the gunrecoils by being discharged, the checks will roll upon said rails, and,by virtue of the eccentricity of the curves of the cheeks, and thefalling away of the upper edge of the rails due to the curve formedtherein, the gun will be lnade to run back, and descend at the sametime, until it is brought into a convenient position for loading, and inraising the gun the reverse operation takes place.

It consists, in the second place, in counterbalancing the weight of thegun by applying weights to the forward ends of the cheeks, and to thelevers by means of which the gun is raised to the position for firing,so that the gun may be readily and easily moved in either direction withthe exercise of very little power.

It consists, in the third place, in the arrangement and combination of asystem of levers, rocker-shafts, and links or connecting-rods, by whichthe gun may be raised or depressed at pleasure; that is to say, raisedabove the parapet or caused to descend below it, as may be desired; andit also consists in the use of rubber or other springs, inserted in therear part of the curved portion of the traversing-rails, to receive theshock of the recoil.

Description of the Drawing.

Figure l is an elevation of a gun-carriage embody: ing my improvements,showing the-gun in position for loading;

Figure 2 is a plan with the parts in the same posi General Description.

AA are the traversing'rails, connected together by suitable girts, therearend being mounted upon a pair of trucks, B B, and the front endpivoted by the pin 0, in the usual manner.

"The upper edge of the rails Aare cutaway to a curved form, as shown,and provided with the gear-teeth A, arranged upon said curve, so thatthe pitch-line of said teeth shall forina reversed curve, the forwardportion being convex and the rear portion concave.

Just in the rear of said teeth the springs or cushions a are secured toof the recoil.

D are the cheeks of the upper carriage, having their lower edges cut toa curved form, and provided with the gear-teeth D which are made to fitthe teeth in the upper edge of the rails A A.

E is the gun, the trunnions Eof which are fitted to bearings placedeccentricall y tothe curved lower edges of saidcheeks, in such a mannerthat the weight of the gun tends to roll the cheeks back on the rails Auntil they fall into the curved recesses formed in the upperedge of saidrails.

The cheeks, thus formed, become variable levers, upon which themechanism, to be hereafterv described,

said rails, to receive the shock acts to raise the gun, the bearing ofthe trunnion being the upper end, and the lower end or fulcrum being thepoint of contact with the rail, which, as the gun is raised, isconstantly moving forward upon said rail by a.rolling action, andthereby lengthening the lever, and thus raising the gun and moving itforward at the same time.

The checks D are held in position on the rails A by the flanges b I) onthe inner sides of the rails, said cheeks being firmly connectedtogether by the tie-girts G and H. V l

I I are short rocker-shafts, fitted to suitable bearings in the rails A,upon the projecting'ends of which are mounted the sockets J, to receivehandspikes for operating the same, and the ratchet-wheels K, upon.

which the pawis L rest when the gun is discharged, to hold the gun inthe position to which it recoils.

M M are two levers firmly secured to the rockershafts I I, between therails A, the upper ends of which are connected by the pin 0 to thelinksNN, the upper ends of said links being secured to the girt H, andforming, with the levers M, a toggle-joint, by which the gun is raised.

' The lower ends of the lovers M are connected together by the rod (1,upon which is suspended the weight 0, and to which is also attached oneend of the chain I, the other end of which is attached to the crank Q,formed in the shaft R, which is mounted in bearings on the rear ends ofthe rails A A, and having the sockets S firmly secured upon itsprojecting ends, for the reception of hand-spikes, by which said crankmay be operated to assist in raising the gun to position for firing.

T T are the counterbalance-weights on the forward v ends of the cheeks;and

U is the elevatingscrcw, constructed and operating in the usual manner.v

e e are abutments formed on the rails A A, against which the toes of thecheeks D D rest when the gun is in the position for firing.

The operation of my improved carriage is as follows:

The gun and carriage being in the position'represented in fig. 1, andthe gun being loaded, handspikcs are placed in the sockets J and S, andthe pawls L are thrown out of gear with the ratchet-wheels, when therocker-shafts are rotated in adirection toward the muzzle of the gun,when .the action of the levers, assisted by the counter-weights, willcause the cheeks to roll along upon the curved surface of the rails, thepoint of contact constantly changing, and the distance between saidpoint of contact and the trunnion of the gun constant-1y increasing,which, in connection withthe rolling of the point of contact over theconvex portion ofthe curve on the rail, raises the gun to the properheight, and, at the same time, it is moved for ward into position forfiring,'when the straight portion Dof the cheeks rests upon acorresponding straight part, A, of the rails, with the toe or extremeforward end of the cheeks resting against the abutments e e, andthecounter-weights T T, assisted by the position of the levers, servetohold the gun in this position until it is fired. I

The pawls L are now thrown into gear with the ratchet-wheels K, when thegun is discharged.

The recoil of the gun occasioned by the discharge causes therocker-shaft I to: be rotated by its action 'upon the levers M M, and,overcoming the resistance of the oounter-weightsthe cheeks will rollalong the curved-tooth surface of the rails until theyassume theposition from which they were previously raised, if the recoil ispowerful enough to move the gun the whole distance, shock. If the recoilshould not be powerful enough to bring the gun toits original position,the pawls L, acting upon the ratchet-wheels K, will hold the gun in thatposit-ion, when handspikes maybe inserted in the sockets J, and a slightrotation of the rocker-shaft I will bring the gun to the position forloading.

. Claims.

I claim 1. The cheeks D D, constructed to roll upon thetraversing-rails, as set' forth, when the gun is mounted inbearingsiformed in said cheeks, without an intervening carriage orframe, substantially as described.

2. In combination with a gun mounted eccentrically in cheeks D,constructedito roll upon the traversingrails, as set forth, constructingthat portion of the upper edges of the traversing-rails A, over whichthecheeks D roll, in a curved form, to increase the rise and fall of thegun, substantially as described.

3.. In combination with agun mounted in cheeks constructed to roll uponthe trzwersing-rails, the rocker-shaft I, levers M, and links N,arranged and operating substantially as described.

4.111 combination with a gun mounted in cheeks constructed to roll uponthe traversing-rails, as set forth, the lovers M, the rocker-shaft R,crank Q, and I chain 1?, arranged and operating substantially asdescribed. v

Executed at Boston this 20th day of April, 1870. THOS. COUGHLAN.

Witnesses:

N. O. LOMBARD, G. E. WHl'INEY.

when the rubber spring will receive the.

